Zuffa Boxing stages its fifth numbered event on Easter Sunday, April 5, at the Meta APEX in Las Vegas, headlined by a lightweight matchup between undefeated contender Andres Cortes and surging Dominican Eridson Garcia. The eight-fight card streams live on Paramount+, with preliminary bouts beginning at 6 p.m. ET and the three-fight main card at 9 p.m. ET. In the UK, the card airs live on Sky Sports, the first event under Zuffa Boxing’s recently announced multi-year British broadcast deal.
The card also features former WBC featherweight champion Mark Magsayo making his Zuffa debut against Ireland’s Feargal McCrory in a lightweight co-feature, and Armenian puncher Azat Hovhannisyan meeting Mexico’s Eduardo Baez in a featherweight bout that opens the main card broadcast. Combined, the three televised fights represent the kind of matchmaking that has defined Zuffa Boxing’s early run: recognizable names paired against legitimate opposition, with stakes attached to the outcomes.
Main Event: Andres Cortes (24-0, 13 KOs) vs. Eridson Garcia (23-1, 14 KOs), 10 Rounds, Lightweight
Cortes, 28, makes his Zuffa Boxing debut after leaving Top Rank, bringing an unbeaten record and rankings across three sanctioning bodies into the promotion’s lightweight division. The Las Vegas native is currently ranked fifth by the WBC and fourth by the WBO at 130 pounds, though the bout will be contested at 135 under Zuffa’s streamlined eight-division structure. He is a sharp, combination-oriented fighter with enough pop to stop opponents when he sits down on his punches, as evidenced by his fourth-round TKO of Derlyn Hernandez Gerarldo in October 2025 and his earlier knockout of former world title challenger Genesis Servania.
The step up in weight could cut both ways. Cortes has campaigned primarily at super featherweight throughout his career, and his first outing at lightweight in Zuffa’s system will test whether his power and hand speed translate against bigger men. His most notable wins have come against Bryan Chevalier, whom he stopped in four rounds for the WBO Inter-Continental title, and Abraham Nova, whom he outpointed in a close but controversial unanimous decision in June 2024 after missing weight.
Garcia, 31, is a southpaw from Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic, now based in Houston. He arrives on a six-fight winning streak following the lone loss of his career in 2023, and he carries significantly more power than his record might suggest at first glance. Garcia is a technically sound operator who prefers to work behind angles and a sharp lead right hand from his southpaw stance. He is not a volume puncher, but he picks his spots well, and his ability to fight on the inside could create problems for Cortes if the distance tightens.
This is a meaningful step up for both men. Cortes is the clear A-side as the unbeaten prospect fighting in his hometown, but Garcia is not a name chosen for the resume. If the Dominican can pressure Cortes early and force exchanges at close range, the fight becomes far more competitive than the odds suggest. For Cortes, a clean, decisive victory here would immediately place him among the top contenders in Zuffa Boxing’s lightweight division and could set up a significant fight later in the year.
Co-Feature: Mark Magsayo (28-2, 18 KOs) vs. Feargal McCrory (17-1, 9 KOs), 10 Rounds, Lightweight
Magsayo’s move to Zuffa Boxing is a career reset in every sense. The 30-year-old Filipino, who captured the WBC featherweight title with a majority decision over Gary Russell Jr. in January 2022, has been searching for a promotional home after a period of inactivity and the end of his association with MP Promotions. He told BoxingScene that he had been in camp since his July 2025 victory over Jorge Mata Cuellar but saw multiple planned fights in October, December, January, and February fall apart. The frustration was evident: Magsayo said his goal was to headline a show and deliver a great night of boxing for fans following the new promotion.
This fight is also a leap in weight. Magsayo won his world title at 126 pounds and has fought most recently at super featherweight. Moving to 135 is a jump of two full divisions from his championship peak, and he has acknowledged that the constant weight cutting sapped his strength and legs in the past. At his natural weight, Magsayo possesses sharp combination punching, solid pop in both hands, and the kind of aggressive style that fits Zuffa Boxing’s action-first philosophy.
McCrory, 33, is a Brooklyn-based Irishman from Tyrone who signed a three-year deal with Zuffa Boxing. He is coming off an impressive eighth-round knockout of Keenan Carbajal at Madison Square Garden and enters with only one career loss, a stoppage defeat to former WBA 130-pound champion Lamont Roach Jr. in June 2024. McCrory is a durable, high-motor southpaw with a stiff right hook and a willingness to fight on the inside. He told the Irish Echo that Magsayo hits very hard and is very experienced, but that he accepted the fight because getting the biggest challenges is the reason he came to America.
The betting lines have Magsayo as a prohibitive favorite, and the talent gap on paper is considerable. But Magsayo has never fought at lightweight, and McCrory is the naturally bigger man with a clear willingness to absorb punishment and keep working. If Magsayo’s power carries to 135, this should be a showcase. If it does not, McCrory has the engine and the toughness to make it a long night.
Main Card Opener: Azat Hovhannisyan (22-6, 17 KOs) vs. Eduardo Baez (25-7-2, 10 KOs), 10 Rounds, Featherweight
This is a crossroads fight between two former world title challengers who have taken their share of losses but remain dangerous on any given night. Hovhannisyan, 37, is a Los Angeles-based Armenian known as “Crazy A” for his aggressive, pressure-heavy style. He challenged Rey Vargas for the WBC super bantamweight title in 2018 and has compiled a highlight reel filled with brutal stoppages, but he enters this fight having lost three of his last five bouts, including to Luis Nery (TKO11), Alan Picasso (UD), and Sebastian Hernandez (UD). He bounced back with a unanimous decision over previously unbeaten Aidos Medet in January on a Zuffa Boxing preliminary card, earning his slot on this main card broadcast.
Baez, 30, from Mexico, challenged Emanuel Navarrete for the WBO featherweight title in 2022 and was stopped in six rounds. He has the more experienced ledger with 34 professional fights but has dropped four of his last five, including a fourth-round TKO loss to Yan Santana in November 2024. On paper, both men are coming in with something to prove and very little margin for error. The loser may find himself fighting exclusively on untelevised cards going forward.
Stylistically, this has the makings of a fun fight. Hovhannisyan’s relentless pressure against Baez’s technical approach should produce action, particularly in the middle rounds as the pace begins to take its toll. Neither man is a front-runner at this stage of his career, which means both have every reason to leave everything in the ring.
Preliminary Card
The five-fight undercard, streaming on Paramount+ beginning at 6 p.m. ET, features two matchups between unbeaten fighters. Rising featherweights Alexis De la Cerda (8-0, 4 KOs) and Ervin Fuller III (12-0, 6 KOs) meet over eight rounds in what shapes up as the undercard’s most competitive bout. Undefeated lightweights Robert Meriwether III and Tony Hirsch Jr. also clash. The prelims are rounded out by bouts featuring Maravillo vs. Elias Diaz, Troy Nash vs. Bryan Rodriguez, and Eduardo Cardenas vs. Alonso Alvarado, the 18-year-old Coachella prospect making his second consecutive Zuffa Boxing appearance after fighting on the Zuffa Boxing 04 undercard three weeks ago.
The Bigger Picture
Zuffa Boxing 05 is the promotion’s fifth event in just over ten weeks, a pace that underscores Dana White’s stated intention to build a year-round schedule of monthly cards. The first four events have established a pattern: one flagship main event supported by competitive, well-matched bouts from top to bottom. The corporate infrastructure behind Zuffa Boxing continues to expand, and the Sky Sports deal announced on March 18 guarantees at least five UK events per year, adding international reach to a promotion that has so far operated exclusively out of the Meta APEX.
Cortes vs. Garcia is not a world title fight, and it is not designed to be. It is a well-matched, meaningful contest between two fighters with real ambitions in the lightweight division, which is exactly the kind of fight that builds a promotion’s credibility over time. If Cortes passes this test cleanly, Zuffa has a genuine contender fighting out of its Las Vegas base. If Garcia can pull the upset, the promotion gets a dramatic result that validates its matchmaking. Either outcome is useful, and that is the difference between booking fights and building a roster.
